Christopher James Etzel

Christopher J. Etzel, 53, of Indianapolis, died at 2:12 p.m., December 13, 2017. Born in Lafayette, IN on November 22, 1964, he was the youngest son of James and Barbara (nee Shoup) Etzel. He was brother to Pamela Skinner (Indianapolis, IN), Gregory Etzel (Lafayette, IN), Mark Etzel, wife Regina (Madison, WI), and Scott Etzel, wife Betsy (Concord, CA), all who survive him. He met Vicki L. King, the love of his life, on July 16, 2004 at the historic Indianapolis live-music venue: the Melody Inn. They were married on November 30, 2017. Chris had three brothers and one sister, but he grew up as an only child of sorts since he was 7 years younger than the next-youngest sibling. When he was five years old, his brother frequently drove Chris to Weber’s Hobby Shop in Lafayette to buy model kits and supplies. It was at Weber’s that Chris found his passion, and by high school, he was winning big at IPMS Regionals and Nationals for his 1/48 scale WWII aircraft. He taught himself how to make detailed and historically accurate resin model kits and white metal parts for famous Indy 500 classics and launched his first start-up company, “Etzel’s Speed Classics”. He filled orders from every state in the USA and all over the world, including Japan. After he sold off the business, a re-sale market emerged for his un-built kits. Although he got out of the model kit business, he continued to build racing car models as a hobby. Formula 1 cars at 1/43 scale were his specialty. Chris became a history buff on Indiana car racing, war aircraft and F-1 racing. He launched another start-up, Lowbrow Effects, for hand-painted, custom-built guitar effect pedals. He rebuilt classic guitar amplifiers and made custom hand-painted guitars. Chris loved music. He taught himself to play guitar and played in a Rock and Roll band, IDK, which played gigs at well-known clubs. Chris was an artist, a craftsman, a historian and a musician all at once. Besides his keen intellect, meticulous attention to detail and artistic talent, Chris had an engaging personality. He was kind and generous to all and had a wide network of friends and colleagues. To all who knew him, including his beloved cats Hazel and Tesla, Chris will be sorely missed.

Tributes

Christopher James Etzel

November 22, 1964 - December 13, 2017